Conventional golf tees are designed with a wide tee platform, which tapers down to a thinning shank that can pierce soil. They are typically fragile and many are destroyed by a swing coming in too steep and hitting down on the ball. While adequate for play on a course, conventional golf tees are inadequate for driving ranges that situate golfers on a hard surface. A driving range typically positions a golfer practicing his swing on a hard surface such as concrete and the golf ball is played off a mat. A conventional tee cannot pierce the hard underlying surface of the mat. Even if balanced on the mat, the conventional tee would be top heavy and the golfer would have difficulty maintaining the ball on the tee. The golfer may place the ball directly on the mat or may elevate the ball using an improvised object such as a bottle cap. Such approaches used at a driving range may be harmful to the golfer and the golf club. Hitting a ball off the mat or just elevated therefrom may result in the club striking the surface, jamming the golfer's arm, or damaging the club head.
As can be seen, there is a need for a device that can support a golf ball on hard surface environments with sufficient elevation and stability while holding the ball.